I started folk dancing in earnest 10 years ago in Montana. We had a little start-up group where we all pooled what bits of knowledge we had, which turned out to be quite a lot as a group. After 3 years there I moved to Oklahoma and have now been active in Tulsa International Folk Dancers for 7 years. I have been the main teacher for several years. I think that teaching beginners is very important, but so is training new leaders. I'm also the newsletter editor for Texas IFD, of which Tulsa IFD is a member group.

My husband and I try to go folk or contra dancing on any trip we take for family or business reasons and I have had the opportunity to visit many different IFD clubs all over the country. I have learned many dances in this manner, and met lots of great people, and have also gotten to see some organizational things that work and others that don't work so well. I do what I can to incorporate what works back at home, and to learn from observing what doesn't work.